PENSACOLA, Fla. – Behind a career-high 20 points from senior
Emma Martin and 17 points from junior
Kalifa Ford and senior
Aleisha Curry, the Valdosta State women's basketball team posted a 72-64 victory Saturday evening versus Palm Beach Atlantic for the first win of the season.
Martin was masterful in the game as she was 6 of 10 from the field and 5 of 5 from deep, while going 3 of 4 from the line. Ford also finished 6 of 10 from the field and 4 of 4 from the line, while draining one triple. Curry came off the bench for 17 points on 4 of 7 from the field and a perfect 9 of 9 from the line as VSU went 1-1 in the Gulf South Conference/Sunshine State Regional Crossover.
Palm Beach Atlantic, who defeated host West Florida Friday evening, had all five starters in double figures led by 15 points from Darria Whitley. VSU dominated the glass again, outrebounding the Sailfish 42-32 for the game and, what turned out to be the biggest difference was free throw shooting as VSU went 22 of 29 from the stripe, while PBA was just 9 of 14.
VSU shot 22 of 51 from the field, while going 6 of 14 from range. The Lady Blazers held PBA to 24 of 65 from the field and 7 of 25 from deep. PBA held a 19-15 lead in points off turnovers as the Lady Blazers had 20 miscues, while the Sailfish had 15. The game saw two ties and one lead change.
The Sailfish raced out to an early 10-4 lead, but Ford's only triple of the game at the 5:13 mark in the first half, sparked a 10-2 run by the Lady Blazers to close the first quarter with a 14-10 lead. The run continued into the second as VUS stretched the lead to as many as 14 at 29-15 on a triple by Martin off a steal from senior
Lili Long with 5:58 remaining in the half. Since Ford's 3-pointer, VSU outscored PBA 25-5 over just under ten playing minutes. After a bucket from PBA, Martin buried another one from distance for a 32-17 lead. PBA would cut the deficit to 12, but layups from Martin and Curry would push the lead to 16 as VSU settled for a 36-22 lead at the break.
PBA came roaring out of the gates in the third as it trimmed the deficit to 38-36 using a 14-2 run capped with a bucket from Jahnae Midget with 4:15 left in the quarter. Two free throws from Curry stopped the bleeding, but Whitley answered with a triple pulling the Sailfish within one at 40-39 with 3:20 left in the third. VSU answered back, however, with a 7-2 run, before Jillian Schenk hit a long one with four seconds left in the frame cutting the VSU lead to 47-44.
In the fourth, a triple by Kash Ayuso tied the game at 49, but a 7-0 run by the Lady Blazers stretched lead to 56-49 as Curry scored four points during the spurt with 7:22 to go. Junior
Courtney Stothard pushed the lead to ten off a miscue by the Sailfish at 61-51 with 5:01 to play.
Down the stretch, VSU swelled the lead to 13 on an "and one" from Curry at 70-57 with 1:11 remaining. PBA would cut the deficit to eight on a jumper from Whitley in the closing seconds. VSU went 11 of 15 from the line in the fourth quarter to seal the victory and 7 of 10 from the field for the frame. PBA went 7 of 18 from the field in the final stanza, but was just 2 of 10 from distance after starting 5 of 15 for the first three quarters from beyond the arc.
The Lady Blazers return home to open the 2023-24 home slate Monday at 6 p.m. at The Complex versus Brewton-Parker.
